Saturday, 25 July 2015

The Lifeguard by Deborah Blumenthal

Series: N/A

Author: Deborah BlumenthalPage Count: 277Published: March 1st, 2012

Publisher: Albert Whitman & Company

4 Stars ★★★★

Sirena's parents are divorcing and as a result she must spend the summer at her aunt's house in another state. Confused and upset over the divorce and her future, she spends lots of time at the beach sketching and drawing.

Soon she meets Pilot, a gorgeous lifeguard, and is drawn to him, curious and smitten. She sees him all the time; at the beach, and even at the hospital where she is volunteering. When he seemingly brings a man back from the dead, she is all the more fascinated.

Will she uncover the mysteries behind Pilot and his power? Does Antonio, a wise, elderly artist have anything to do with it? And does Pilot have feelings for Sirena like she does for him?

This book was slow at first. Near the beginning, I had to push myself to read the first few chapters. It got better and better as I read, and the ending was fantastic.

I liked the mix of contemporary with a bit of fantasy or paranormal. While the book had a very contemporary, real-world vibe overall, Pilot's powers and small paranormal occurrences throughout gave it a unique twist.

Sirena was a fairly likeable character. I felt empathy towards her and her situation, however sometimes I wanted to smack her! She made some extremely questionable choices, some of which were not at all necessary and made me face-palm. While this was very annoying, I was grateful that she wasn't whiny or incredibly over dramatic as some YA female protagonists I've come across have been.

Pilot was a super nice guy, he was a hero, and he looked perfect..... This irritated me a bit. He was very cliché in this sense, the flawless, noble love interest. With his mysterious demeanor, the way he avoided Sirena.....he was very 'typical-YA-love-interest'. However, he was a genuinely nice person, he wasn't a jerk, and he honestly cared about others, which I found redeemed his character.

Overall, I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this book. It wasn't perfect but it was emotional and sweet.

I recommend this book to YA readers, especially those who like books set on beaches, summer romance reads, and emotional stories.